Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor Review
Release Date: June 19th, 2012
Platform: Xbox 360 Kinect
Developer: FROM SOFTWARE
Publisher: Capcom
Genre: Motion Control
Players: 1 Offline Player, 4 Players Online
Angry Joe grabs his Kinect and climbs into the cockpit of Steel Battalion once again! Does it live up to its thematic older brother? Or is it the black sheep of the family that no one wants to talk about? I think you know the answer.
Also, I fixed the Box Art. Now its helpful to the potential buyer.
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217 thoughts on “Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor Review”
Great review Joe, pretty sad what they did to this franchise
I havent played steel batallion, but i have a feeling its a case of joe not knowing how to use the kinect.
If you take a moment to think about the specific cues the kinect is looking for, then try to make those cues more obvious by adjusting how you perform the actions you can usually get games to work pretty well. I have never had a problem with kinect reading me other than the occasional hiccup.
That said ive never liked mech games so i wasnt going to pickup steel batallion either way.
I actually sold my kinect that I got with my X360 S. I knew it would ruin my gaming experience. I bought few decent games after I sold that piece of crap.
I agree with Joe, this is another demonstration of how bad the kinect works, and it’s a shame, because I was one of those who thought it had potential…
Another week without that d3 review you said was coming after e3.
Corporate commander must be paying you well
P.S No hate Joe i enjoy your vids but if your not going to review it then just say so dude
“WTF is this shit?” HAHA, the opening got me. XD
WOAH, Joe said “especially!”
But on a more serious note… I will not buy this game. And I feel bad for anyone who bought the kinect.
I say “Ryse” will be the last game to prove Kinect’s power. It is from Crytek which are one of the most skilled developers out there. If they could not make it “fun to control”, then lets hope this will be the end of wasting potential titles on crippled controlling mechanism.
Even though, I doubt ever that somebody will invent a successful kinect hardcore game. Hardcore Gaming requires precision and you cannot achieve that without TOOLS. Imagine I remove the steering wheel from your car and I tell you “hey man just imagine there is a wheel and it will work” now would you able to drive as accurate as a steering wheel ? NO. The only thing good with kinect are the lazy minigames or things that need body movement with static displacement. Like dancing. But I hope Crytek will prove us wrong.
Hey sorry you had a rough time with this game. From what i saw your biggest issue was playing this game like most, charge in murder everything move on. Its all about staying cool under pressure and keeping control of your movements and actions. Game wise it has flaws but it did not feel broken and unplayable to me. Its funny how every person who reviewed this game all struggled with having patience and learning to work with the motion controls rather than fight it and flail around in a rage. All in all a good review but im really enjoying this game. It does take some getting used to but what new kind of controls dont have a learning curve like switching from snes to n64 or gamecube? Adept with technology because even if your not ready to move on it will always move on to bigger “better hopefully” things.
Why do people still try to make these Kinect games? The Kinect is an abomination, it only works with these casual minigames like Kinect Sports or these generic dancing games, Microsoft should just give up on that crap, all i need to play my games is a fucking joystick, nothing more than that.
So pretty much to sum it up good story and characters, bad gameplay because of the bad responsiveness of the kinect.
Didn’t that massive controller for Steel Battalion make it ridiculously expensive? That, combined with the idea behind the Kinect, may have added to the reasonings behind using it.
The execution still looks horrible, but if it makes the game more affordable so that more people buy it… I can see why they did it.
Too bad, i love Mech games, i’ll pass on this shit.
Thanks again Joe for another awesome review, made me laugh hard on some points =]]
Gr8 job thank you. =]
You know after watching “Fartin’ Around with Steel Battalion Kinect,” your reaction pretty much sums it up that the game sucks.
Oh man now people wonder why Capcom is said to be a sinking ship. They have so many games that have alot of flaws.
Probably people are in complete denial because they do not realize the flaws in Capcom’s games or just blindly accepts Capcom’s business practice. I think Capcom’s ship is sinking very fast.
Well… who’s next on the list of developers/publishers to sink?
or probably they’re paid people in their forums only saying their games are good, but hey there are people that are blind to loyalty, but for me quality of product first before anything else. That’s when I know Iam getting the product where my money will be well spent.
I’d bankroll on EA, dirty business practices have been hurting them for a while and now they are trying to stick their fingers in all their bought franchise pots when they don’t know jackshit about developing games anymore. The signs are already there that they’re starting down the same dark path as capcom.
Worse with Kinect for Xbox 360
The game definitely has potential but the controls look like a complete mess. This game really didn’t need to be on the Kinect. Is there any way to play the game with something like the Mek Fu controller? I remember the guy you interviewed in your video about it mentioning a USB attachment. Do you think there’s a possibility that you can plug in into your 360 to play this and other games with it? Also, can anybody recommend any good mech games for the PS3? I’ve been interested in the genre for a long time but I can’t seem to find anything other than the Armored Core games.
Game does look awful but at least the kinect had a small reason to exist. Still feel sad for anyone who bought a move.
hey joe can you review lego batman 2 dc superheroes? i still playing it and i am in the final missions of the game. so far im very pleased about the game and i had no plomeans with it. 10/10 so far.
i meant to say 10/10 for lego batman 2 so far
and i agead with you joe.
Hey Joe,
Great review, and honestly I felt bad seeing you play this game… it looks completely broken! Games like this need controllers like a HOTAS system with rudder pedals.
I know you mentioned that you always wanted a submarine game that showed actual damage from the inside, well I don’t know if you played it or even have time too, but you can check out the silent hunter series on PC. Silent Hunter 3 and 4 (avoid 5 at all costs!) shows battle damage from the inside of your sub and there is nothing more stressful hunting convoys and being chased down by enemy destroyers while they are pinging you!
Check it out if you have time, it will make you feel a lot better after playing this Horrible game!
It seems like kinect may need some time maby 2 years or 1 years, but the dance games seem to work very well like Dance central 2 and 1!
I hate kinect in any form – it’s a cool idea but with shit execution and I don’t think Kinect is worth it’s price.
Huh – how would you know this game is crap if Joe didn’t review it?
You would waste money on it and get pissed off …
Hey Joe – the clip stops at 10 min and I can’t get any further
it might be my browser but I have tried over like 6 times already…
how bout you stop reviewing crappy games and start reviewing games that NEED to be revied? maybe diablo3 that needs an honest review.. maybe prototype2?
He is doing the D3 Review, tho he didn’t finish it, since the pvp wasn’t released (and it won’t be for quite a while). And this game deserved a review, since it was a genuinely good game, that went bad due to kinect (which is, in all it’s glory, a total step backwards. Seriously, controllers are there to minimise the Brain->Hand+Controller->Console time. When I sit to my console after work, I don’t feel like doing a few pushups and a dance routine every 5 minutes. Just a loose thought
), but from what I saw, it was a good game. Well, hope that what Joe said about returning to the basics with a free DLC will come true, as it sounds like a nice game.
Never really had an option to play this since I only have a PS3, but the idea of the huge control sounds AWESOME! I mean, who’s watched any Gundam series and hasn’t wanted to pilot one of those things?
Also I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the “Kinect 2″, Joe, but don’t sacrifice your wallet or dignity too much for us.
I really wonder how developers feel when they have to make a game for kinect it seems impossible to get anything to work on that piece of shit.
How do they test these games (if they do so at all) I’d love to see it.
Instead of this crap FROM SOFTWARE should’ve made a compatibility patch for Otogi and Otogi 2
It’s Capcom. They propably already got a fix for the controls. As on disk dlc
kinect and 3d can kiss my angry ass and do those people even test these games damn you G I Go evil commander rip off and your microsoft piece of shit you call a motion gaming device
The box art you created is funny, The video review is great, Angry Joe you make my day. =)
Angry Joe if you wanted a realistic submarine game then get Silent Hunter 3,4, or 5? they are all great games and really awesome.
Fucking clown!
Gosh times like this I sure wish I got an Xbox instead of a PS3.
The only game I found that works great with the Kinect is Rise Of Nightmare a capcom game where you on a evil, demonic forest and mansion. You have to fight your way through zombies,ernst and the evil doctor and his wife to get to your wife and this game actually works well with the Kinect with being able to kick open doors, to being to punch the shit out of a zombie and if you dont feel like walking all the time it has a motion that takes you to your objective. so if you want to play a kinect game without problems buy this game it really fun
WTH!!!!! Was really looking forward to this game. Someone please find a way to get this to work with keyboard + mouse or even keyboard + controller.
wow… just wow…
What I’ve learned from discussing about an inferior technologies like 3D glasses and Kinect, these are only part of technological progress. There may be ups and downs during the course and some may be heart broken like Joe did, but lets just believe that we are heading towards a bright future, which gaming interaction has been evolved because we’ve learned from our previews failures. Before the invention of accessible TV, people had to go and look through this scope just to see this grainy video. They even had to take turns to see because it was only accessible in public facilities. Now we’ve got our plasma TVs which most middle class families can afford with clear image.
Off course, making fun of underdeveloped technology is always welcome, but people shouldn’t forget about this. They could come up with better marketing though.
the public should never be beta tested.
and forget about the the 3d glasses they’ve been around since the 90′s and they have been known to cause eye problems.
I’m sorry this is unacceptable even for a beta test. If this was a beta test the price of the Kinect should’ve been down more. Not to whatever the **** the price was. if this was a test this only makes the makers stupider and even a good reason why people should ignore their games and stuff and that it only makes people angry that they bought the games full price of what regular games are.
At this time I highly have my doubts on the success of the Kinect 2 if they plan to with all the huge failures (Free Riders Star Wars Kinect and now this piece of ****) they gave us more than some of the little ones that we like (the dancing ones). They have to pull all of the stops with a new line-up or the fan-base is going to loose interest fast.
I agree with you and I was saying the exact thing at the end of my comment. I Don’t agree with the business practice. I just want people to remind themselves not to deny the technology itself.
It took you long enough to realize the Kinect is crap Joe. Game after game after game of complaining you finally reached the conclusion-> Motion sense in gaming is ALWAYS crap, especially in games where you NEED to be precise and press buttons.(Like this one) Dance and sport games that require little to no precision/button pressing is all motion sense is good for. This game was doomed from the start by requiring Kinect. If they just let you use a controller… and not need Kinect at all… the game probably would have been really good. Not sure why they throw potentially good games to the trash in favor of forcing Kinect upon them. It’s all a gimmick to force Kinect down people’s throats. I knew better and never bought a Kinect.
I’ll be waiting for MechWarrior Online instead of this shit. I bought Legendary Founder 2 weeks ago. After having twittered the game to you I’m glad you mentioned it and I hope you do a video or 2 on it in the upcoming months. If you actually want Mech combat,(It looks like you do tbh Joe) this is the game that’s going to have it. The Mechwarrior universe, if you remember back to MW2-4, is very deep with many Mechs/weapons/factions/etc. MechWarrior with modern day graphics is going to be fantastic. I’ll be waiting for your review on that game and I’m betting it’ll be good. Here’s a link of all the Mechs that have so far been confirmed by Piranha to be in MWO. They will add a lot more before it actually hits release but this is the current roaster.
http://www.mwowiki.org/index.php?title=Category:Confirmed_Mechs
MechWarrior Line+Guild Wars 2 are the games I’m waiting for. These will be among the best games of the year and I’ve pre-ordered both.(120$ for Legendary MWO and 60 for GW2) I hope you get in on these because they will, without a doubt, place on lists for “best of 2012″.
That’s really sad to hear. The game looks like a lot of effort went into it, but crappy controls sank it.
lol I’m just giddy thinking about this review, great box art!
I don’t see Capcom ever releasing a fix for this game so you can only use the controller as Kinect is fucking garbage. If Capcom releases it, it’ll probably be a DLC that costs as much as the game itself.
They will probably just release a new version of the game called Steel Battalion Ultimate Edition
And even then they’d nickle and dime you to get the “full experience”.
That new box art is awesome.
How many more times does the Kinect have to reach levels of epic fail before M$ gives up on this crap?
If it holds up for a bit longer, I’d say unlikely, if devlopers will bother to see the how to design for Kinect thing I’ll probably do, got a fix for this game, look a few comments down
Such a shame, considering From Software’s ARMORED CORE games are awesome. I wish this had used the old Steel Battalion controller, I loved using that thing… Sadly, only 2 games ever used it
i really cant understand it, why does Microsoft insist on releasing broken hardware? first the Red Ring Of Death along with “if you dont have the xbox in the right position it eats your games” and now this?
I really wanted to get into a hardcore mech game after playing Armored Core 4, i guess this one wont be it. ooh and Joe, is it really worth it? just dump the Xbox and get a PS3, or toss the Kinect out the window at the very least xD
Because PS3′s never eat games, nor do they have any faults at all. Each console has its own strengths and weaknesses that basically balances them out, and its only a matter of preference on games. Personally, I think most PS3 games are shit, as Xbox games have more of a focus on multiplayer.
“Broken hardware” Lol,
Story aspect aside, the game design is abysmal, but I think I have a way to fix the gameplay aspect. Don’t use the controller as a direct control, instead, have two cursors on the screen, 1 for each hand, and using LB on one controller RB on another to lock the cursor in place, you then perform then gesture to do it, cos really the one thing people never consider with motion controls is the natural movement from gameplay and this should mitigate the fiddly-ness of it. Hell who said it has to be limited to hand movement for gestures, flicking the control stick or pressing the buttons to mimic switches and well, buttons. But then again, what do I know, I’m only 18 and with no experience in the industry.
I wonder why they released it in the first place since the technology of Kinect is not ready yet.
The kinect is ready, developers aren’t, it needs two controllers but look above for a way to fix this.
It’s sad to see that the game had so much potential, but it just blew it when it really came down to it.
The question of the decade, has there ever been a single fun game in the history of the kinnect that someone has actually enjoyed?
The answer is no
What about Gunslinger?
damn right, but…you could have that on PS3 or Wii and i’d be just as fun, probably more so on the Wii.
Exactly the gunslinger could have worked with just a standard controller it never “needed” kinnect
That and it is kinda the sorta thing the Wii woulda done if they had an indie aspect to their online shop with some actual notability.
The Dance central games?
man, and i was hoping it was a worthy game xD it just looked so cool =( …what is it with kinect games …even haunt works right …its kindda fun actually
finally a new review :3